Kansas City, here comes Ricky

Tuesday

Apr 29, 2008 at 12:01 AMApr 29, 2008 at 7:09 PM

Ricky Santos was at his Bellingham home in front of the TV for what seemed like an eternity. He was keeping tabs, name by name, on the entire NFL Draft. No, Santos isn't one of those obsessed draftniks. His reason was personal. He was looking for his name to pop up on the screen. The draft came and went, with no mention of his name. The silence was deafening at the Santos household where he watched the draft with family and friends. His agent, Brad Blank, had cautioned Santos not to be too discouraged if he wasn't picked.

Lenny Megliola/Daily News staff

Ricky Santos was at his Bellingham home in front of the TV for what seemed like an eternity. He was keeping tabs, name by name, on the entire NFL Draft. No, Santos isn't one of those obsessed draftniks. His reason was personal.

He was looking for his name to pop up on the screen.

The draft came and went, with no mention of his name. The silence was deafening at the Santos household where he watched the draft with family and friends. His agent, Brad Blank, had cautioned Santos not to be too discouraged if he wasn't picked.

"He did a good job managing my prospects in the draft," said Santos, "but obviously it would've been nice to see my name up there."

Santos' high school career at Bellingham was the stuff of legend, and once he got to New Hampshire, a Div. I-AA school, he never stepped on the brake. In fact, the quarterback obliterated the record book, throwing for 13,212 yards and 123 touchdowns.

Twenty minutes after the draft had concluded, the phone rang. The Kansas City Chiefs had dropped the dime.

"They wanted to give me a free agent deal," says Santos.

He wasn't in a position to say no. Santos talked to Kansas City quarterbacks coach Dick Curl, who told him the team had kept an eye on him. It was all news to Santos. The contract is for two years.

Earlier this month the 6-foot-2, 215-pound Santos had planned to work out for a number of teams at New Hampshire. The weather that day was a mess, with snow, sleet and cold forcing Santos to audition inside the fieldhouse. New Hampshire's indoor facility isn't quite the same as, say, Alabama's or Michigan's.

"Our facilities are pretty poor," says Santos, who had to throw off the running track. "It wasn't my best day. I threw the ball pretty well, but there's only so much you can show them throwing indoors."

Only three NFL teams sent someone to watch Santos at UNH: the Patriots, Steelers and Eagles.

The day before, more than 20 NFL teams were represented at Boston College's Pro Day, specifically to see Matt Ryan. Santos had planned on working out that day, too, but was disappointed to find out that only players from colleges in Massachusetts or from towns within a certain distance of Boston proper could perform for NFL eyes under the BC bubble.

"I had been working out with BC kids for that day," says Santos. It seemed like another setback.

The Patriots did call Blank last week before the draft to discuss any scenario in which they'd draft or sign Santos. But it became a moot point when New England took quarterback Kevin O'Connell out of San Diego State in the third round.

Naturally, Santos hopes to compete for the Kansas City starting job, but that may not be realistic. He'd settle for winning the third-string job over David Greene and Tyler Thigpen. Damon Huard, an 11-year NFL vet who will be 35 next season, and Brodie Croyle, 25, split the Chiefs' quarterback duties last season. Huard's QB rating was 76.8, Croyle's 69.9.

"My goal is to make the team," says Santos, a terrific all-around athlete (basketball, baseball) in high school. "It doesn't matter if you're drafted in the first round or a free agent, everything you do in the NFL is a tryout. I want to see how the process unfolds."

As far as the nerveracking draft process goes, Santos says "I'm kind of glad it's over. I was uncertain where I was going to be. I'm satisfied with this."

If it doesn't work out, the Montreal Alouettes of the CFL have shown interest in Santos. But he's thinking more heartland than north of the border these days.

"I'm anxious to get to Kansas City, and throw the ball again," he said

It's a start.

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